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Thermal vacuum testing of a proto-flight miniature loop heat pipe with two evaporators and two condensers
| Content Provider | NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS) |
|---|---|
| Author | Ottenstein, Laura Ku, Jentung |
| Copyright Year | 2011 |
| Description | This paper describes thermal vacuum testing of a proto-flight miniature loop heat pipe (MLHP) with two evaporators and two condensers designed for future small systems applications requiring low mass, low power and compactness. Each evaporator contains a wick with an outer diameter of 6.35 mm, and each has its own integral compensation chamber (CC). Miniaturization of the loop components reduces the volume and mass of the thermal system. Multiple evaporators provide flexibility for placement of instruments that need to be maintained at the same temperature, and facilitate heat load sharing among instruments, reducing the auxiliary heater power requirement. A flow regulator is used to regulate heat dissipations between the two condensers, allowing flexible placement of radiators on the spacecraft. A thermoelectric converter (TEC) is attached to each CC for control of the operating temperature and enhancement of start-up success. Tests performed include start-up, power cycle, sink temperature cycle, high power and low power operation, heat load sharing, and operating temperature control. The proto-flight MLHP demonstrated excellent performance in the thermal vacuum test. The loop started successfully and operated stably under various evaporator heat loads and condenser sink temperatures. The TECs were able to maintain the loop operating temperature within b1K of the desired set point temperature at all power levels and all sink temperatures. The un-powered evaporator would automatically share heat from the other powered evaporator. The flow regulator was able to regulate the heat dissipation among the radiators and prevent vapor from flowing into the liquid line. |
| File Size | 1096676 |
| Page Count | 13 |
| File Format | |
| Alternate Webpage(s) | http://archive.org/details/NASA_NTRS_Archive_20110013454 |
| Archival Resource Key | ark:/13960/t9867h85p |
| Language | English |
| Publisher Date | 2011-06-27 |
| Access Restriction | Open |
| Subject Keyword | Mechanical Engineering Cooling Evaporators Thermal Vacuum Tests Heat Pipes Condensers Liquefiers Temperature Control Miniaturization Flow Regulators Thermoelectricity Chambers Operating Temperature Ntrs Nasa Technical Reports Server (ntrs) Nasa Technical Reports Server Aerodynamics Aircraft Aerospace Engineering Aerospace Aeronautic Space Science |
| Content Type | Text |
| Resource Type | Article |
